For Every Locke, a Key
by Remember December
Summary: There is no such thing as a simple story, especially when your main character requires that everything be 'just right'.
1. One Beginning

Disclaimer: I own nothing of _Once Upon a Time_ but sincerely wish I did.

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><p>Emma slouched at the kitchen table, staring dully at a pile of papers and bills. Moving was always a messy business. No matter how little you had, you always managed to leave something behind, like it or not. And looking at the pile of papers, it seemed she had left a substantial amount of things behind, like say leases on her apartment and invoices for repairs.<p>

In the shock of seeing Henry, her only son, the son she had given up all those years ago, she hadn't stopped to think things through like she normally did. But that rush of feeling that she tried so desperately to deny at the sight of him, to keep locked up with the rest of her heart had overwhelmed her. And so, not less than a week later she had found herself in Storybrooke, Maine. A small town, just like any other small town. But not according to Henry.

A small smile flitted across her lips. He believed all of Storybrooke was cursed, that his adoptive mother Mayor Regina was an evil queen and that she was going to save them. She was going to save an entire town from an imaginary curse. Only her kid would think of something so wonderful.

She took a deep breath, sliding down onto the table, resting her aching head. Just for a moment...just one...

Henry sat in a booth by himself, watching Ruby saunter throughout the diner. He had the Book on the table in front of him, open to Goldilocks' story. His hot chocolate was almost gone. Ruby only ever gave him two, said he was sweet enough already. He suspected it was more along the lines that the Queen had told her not to but it didn't bother him. The Queen was always doing things like that. He knew he couldn't get rid of her, that was his mom's job. So he would help Emma and that would be just right.

Ruby stopped in front of him, looking down at him with a soft smile. She took his old cup and gave him a new one, cinnamon sprinkled on the whipped cream. She gave him a wink.

"Who is it this time?" she asked, amusement dancing in her black eyes.

"I'm not sure. I was just reading about Goldilocks. But you're not her."

Ruby leaned over a little to take a better look at the picture in the book. She wrinkled her nose at the cuteness of it. But for some reason, a warm but annoyed feeling crept up on her. The girl in the picture looked so familiar...

"I need some coffee over here!"

Joe's yell broke into her thoughts and rolling her eyes, she turned to attend to him. Henry watched her walk off. He was only ten, but even he knew when someone liked something or not. And she had looked at that picture like she looked at her best friend, Ella, like she was happy to see her.

He took a sip of his hot chocolate and flipped a few more pages in the book.

"Knock knock."

The warm voice made him look up. It was Aurelie. She was the vet's assistant and other librarian in Storybrooke, after Damali. Aurelie was tall and solidly built, fair-skinned with bright blue eyes and the most beautiful blond hair. No matter what she did, her hair was shiny and clean, the slight waves falling into place perfectly. But Damali was short and slender, her skin a creamy mocha. She had sharp green eyes, thick black hair and a button of a nose that she'd glare down at you from when you were being too loud.

Aurelie slid into the seat across from him, a grin stretched across her wide mouth. That was the best thing about Aurelie. Her smile was so big and happy, you felt yourself get swept right up in it, no matter what. Henry grinned back.

"Hi, Aurelie!"

"Good morning, Henry. I was just about to get some lunch when I saw you and that big book of yours. What kind of book is it?" She had the slightest accent to her speech, but no one ever knew where it was from. Aurelie called herself a hyper-polyglot, which meant she spoke a lot of languages so maybe her accent was just a blend of all of them.

"It's a fairy tale book."

"Oh? Which ones?" She put her elbows on the table and cupped her face in her hands, giving him all her attention.

"All of them."

Her eyebrows rose and a grin tugged her lips to the right. "All of them? Why then, that must be a wonderful book. Do you have a favorite fairy tale?"

Henry blinked at her. He hadn't thought about it before. Aurelie chuckled and waited for him to finish thinking. Ruby walked over to see what she wanted to eat.

"Ruby, do you have a favorite fairy tale?" Henry asked her.

He missed the warning look Aurelie shot her, reminding her that Henry was a child and was to be treated as gently as possible. Ruby bit back the words that had originally come to mind at the dangerous look and smirked at him instead.

"Fairy tales are for little people like you. When you get older like me, you read different stories. I haven't read one in so long, I can't remember."

The dangerous look in Aurelie's eyes softened into one of thanks and approval at the gentle answer. Henry turned to her.

"Do you have a favorite fairy tale, Aurelie?"

She tapped one nail-bitten finger against her cheek, eyes clouded over in deep thought.

"My favorite fairy tale is probably one you haven't heard of before," she said after a moment.

Henry gave her a curious look and Ruby one of barely concealed skepticism.

"It's called Twelve Brothers. It's all about how you should always treasure what you have," Aurelie said lifting her head from her hands. She looked up at Ruby. "A hot chocolate for me today, Ruby, grilled cheese and tomato soup with an apple. Thank you."

Ruby jotted it down in her swirling scrawl and walked back to the kitchen. Henry watched as Aurelie inspected her silverware. She was always so particular about things. Most people called her fussy, including Damali, but he didn't think so. Aurelie was smart, the kind of smart that came from paying attention to detail.

Henry stared at her as a thought struck him. She knew all sorts of fairy tales. She was smart and she was always trying something new. Maybe she would help him. He gathered up his courage.

"Aurelie?"

She paused in her scrubbing of her knife and looked at him.

"Yes, Henry?"

"Do you believe in magic?"

She blinked at him, before her face settled into a more serious and thoughtful expression. "My dear, there are all sorts of magic. Which kind do you mean?"

Henry sat back in the booth, eyes wide. That was always the hard thing about talking with Aurelie. She made you think of new things all the time and so it was hard to get a straight answer.

"There's more than one kind of magic?"

She chuckled again. "Why of course, you silly boy! Think with me for a moment. In all those fairy tale books has magic ever done the same thing the same way?"

Henry felt his head start to hurt as all sorts of thoughts rushed through his mind. Her blue eyes crinkled in amusement, sensing his turmoil.

"You're very confusing," he blurted.

Aurelie smiled at him. "Damali says the same thing all the time. But Henry, don't you have somewhere to be today?"

Henry looked at the clock above the kitchen counter. It read 11:07. He jumped and stuffed the book into his backpack.

"Thanks Aurelie! See you later!" he yelled over his shoulder as he ran out of the diner. He was supposed to help Mary Margaret with her garden today.

"Hey!" Ruby called after him.

"I'll pay for his hot chocolate, Ruby," Aurelie called from her booth, guessing what had caused the ruckus.

Ruby sighed but a smirk landed on her lips anyway. Aurelie was a pain, but she was a good person. Even if she had to have her oatmeal made three times before she was happy with it. The bell chimed and Ruby's cheery, "Be with you in a minute!" rang out.

Mr. Gold stepped into the establishment, the door shutting softly behind him, a horribly amused expression on his face. He looked over the current residents of the diner and noted with pleasure that Aurelie was there. She was scribbling furiously in a tattered notebook, a frown on her normally cheerful face. With a smirk he walked silently over to her table.

Joe snickered as Ruby refilled his cup for the fourth time that morning. Ruby gave him a quizzical look and turned to see what we was looking at. They shared a smirk and turned to watch with interest.

Aurelie tapped her pen against her cheek, rereading the last few lines she had written. Shaking her head she drew a line through a few words and continued her furious scribbling. Mr. Gold leaned against his cane casually belying his intent interest in the young woman before him. He noted with interest that she wasn't writing in English, but some other language that might have been pure gibberish or Slavic in origin.

"Lovely weather we're having isn't it, Miss Locke?" he said smoothly, hoping to startle her.

"Mr. Gold, how nice to hear your voice again," Aurelie replied distractedly, still focused on her writing.

A quick frown flickered across his face, having failed to produce the desired reaction. He shifted slightly and tried another tack.

"Forgive me, am I interrupting something?"

Aurelie counted some invisible items on her fingers. "But isn't that always the case, Mr. Gold? In order to begin a proper conversation, one always finds it necessary to interrupt something. Did you mean to ask is my current task of importance? Or were you hoping for a proper conversation?" She flipped through the pages of her notebook, looking for a specific line.

"Perhaps a bit of both, Miss Locke, however am I curious as to whether you are busy later today."

"Really now, Mr. Gold, specificity if you please. You did not answer either of my questions and so my inclination to answer yours however nicely stated, grows less and less."

Aurelie missed his irritated expression in favor of snapping her notebook shut. She tucked it neatly away in her messenger beg and looked up at him at last. She gave him a careful going over, noting the indicators of what the prestigious landlord of Storybrooke had been up to.

"You wish to ask me a favor. Tell me and I will name my price." She folded her arms neatly on the table. "Join me won't you? Conversation is so much easier when both parties are comfortable."

Mr. Gold's shoulders stiffened in the beginnings of anger. "You presume too much, Miss Locke. I have said nothing of the sort."

Aurelie gave a warm chuckle. "Very well then, Mr. Gold. I shall assume we are not having a conversation and go back to what I was doing." She twitched her fingers over her bag and didn't miss his fingers tightening on his cane.

His lips were pursed and his expression was suspiciously close to that of a glare. "That won't be necessary," he snapped. "I found a-"

"-A wounded bird on your property this morning and were wondering whether I had the time to give it a looking over seeing as Damali has the flu," she interrupted.

"Yes, I _know_, Mr. Gold. You still haven't answered my question however. Will you join me?" Her blue eyes twinkled with mischief and something far less pleasant.

He stood up straight abruptly and gave her a look that was somewhere between admiration, irritation and surprise. He folded his hands over the top of his cane and considered his next move carefully.

Ruby began to walk over, a few plates balanced beautifully in her hands, unbeknownst to him. Aurelie noted it but turned back to the business at hand.

"I must respectfully decline, Miss Locke. I have-"

"Your shop to attend to," she finished his sentence for him. She leaned on one of her hands and gave him a toothy grin, that somehow looked a tad bit too predatory for the normally cheerful face. "Yes, I believe I am free this afternoon Mr. Gold. However, considering that this will be on my time alone, my price will be slightly different than usual."

A slight face creased his face. He opened his mouth, "And-"

"You have a rather beautiful quill in that shop of yours. The one with three feathers. That is my price. And before you ask, I will take no other payment. I will see you at two. Good morning, Mr. Gold. "

And with that prompt dismissal, he had no choice but to turn and leave.

"Set those down there, won't you Ruby, dear?"

Ruby did and gave Aurelie a worried look as she took her empty cup.

Aurelie noticed it and shook her head. "Mr. Gold needs to be reminded that no matter how much money he has, there are still people that he cannot control."

"Yeah, but you don't go picking fights you won't win," Ruby said, a hand falling naturally to her hip.

Aurelie looked up for a brief moment, her blue eyes turned colder than ice. "I bow to no master," she murmured quietly looking back down at her plate, sending a shiver down Ruby's spine.

Ruby walked back to the counter and shook her head. Only Aurelie could be that confident after narrowly avoiding disaster. For out of everyone in the diner, only she had missed the furious, thunderous expression on Mr. Gold's face.

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><p>Author's Note: Merry Christmas, Happy Solstice and Joyous New Year to all my Muses (you know who you are) and readers! Not to fear, there will be more chapters but I warn you now that my updates will not always be timely. I am a horribly slow typist. Here, have a candycane to tide you over until the next chapter. And as always, reviews are much encouraged and appreciated.<p>

EDIT: The awful number of typo's finally fixed. That should read better now.


	2. The First Beginning

Disclaimer: _Once Upon a Time_ does not belong to me, although I sincerely wish it did.

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><p>There were many kingdoms in this world. A vast and varied reality that was a gem among universes. But even amongst kingdoms, there were some that stood far above and beyond the rest. And the Kingdom of Osgardin was one such kingdom.<p>

It was not a large kingdom, but nor was it small. It was temperate, but experienced four seasons. It had nobility, peasantry, magic, rebels, and even the occasional war. It had great wealth from its many mines and arable fields and lakes but never enough to provoke jealousy from its neighbors. Plagues and pestilence generally avoided the healthy population and did not reduce civilization to mere ashes when they dropped by for a necessary visit. In fact, you could say that the Kingdom of Osgardin, was just right.

But this almost perfect kingdom came with a heavy burden. A royal family that by all rights could be one of the strangest in all living history, both Before Common Time and in Common Time. Yes, the eccentric proudly aspired to be like or one of the Osgardian Royals. And for more than one reason alone.

The very first royal of Osgardin had in fact, been a Queen. Gretchen the Bard, although charming, was tone-deaf and had used her lyre as an instrument of death more often than a musical aide in the fight to unify Osgardin. Her twin sons, Waldo and Odlaw, had been alchemists famous for making things go boom and their penchant for stripes.

And so the list went on and on, including a mushroom grower, a spoon enthusiast, an architect famous for making staircases to nowhere, a king who made nothing but clay garden gnomes, a button maker, two interior decorators specializing in the color yellow, an amnesiac who only remembered things two years after they happened, a painter of fruits, a whittler who carved nothing, a king who wore nothing but pink and a collector of broken glass.

Now, however eccentric their Kings and Queens might be, the people of Osgardin would never commit the error of thinking them fools. Military strategists, scientists, mathematicians, doctors, agricultural innovators, generals, linguists, magicians, carpenters, smiths and artists whose works, theories, inventions and names had become synonymous with History itself. These were the Kings and Queens of Osgardin, protectors and defenders of their realm. And if they had the occasional quirk, say an appreciation for silver deer sculptures, all the better. A little amusement served to lessen fear, imagined or not.

But recently the Kingdom of Osgardin had suffered a more normal problem and that was what had the entire country paying keen attention to the capital. King Stephan had been the right sort. A happy child with a bright mind, known for his wit, morning cheeriness, love of shoes and cobbling. After marrying a woman famous for her jams, he had taken the throne from his parents who had abdicated in their old age to breed goats. Queen Julianna was beautiful and beloved but some worried not eccentric enough to ward off trouble. But soon enough she proved to be a rarity all of her own.

For you see, Queen Julianna was blessed with twelve perfectly healthy babes. The entire kingdom had watched in amazement as one beautiful boy after another was born. Stranger things were no stranger here, but this was something altogether unheard of. Now to be fair, there were large families all throughout the kingdom, up to nineteen in some places. But never had anyone heard of twelve boys and not a girl among them. Some said it was just the sort of quirk the Queen needed.

Others worried there would be a fight for the throne. For you see, inheriting the throne was an odd thing here in Osgardin. It did not matter who was born first or whether they were a boy or girl. The royals understood very keenly that the throne was both the greatest responsibility and greatest chore. More often than not, the children themselves decided who would take the throne. In fact, there had even been three kings at one point. But as the boys grew, their fears were laid to rest.

The firstborn was Arthur, then followed Albert and his twin Alvin, Ames, Archibald, Alastair, Angus, twins Alexander and Andrew, Alan, Aaron and last of all, Anthony. They were talented and more quirky than Osgardin had ever hoped them to be. Each of the brothers had one great talent and several quirks. But with every good thing there comes something not so nice riding on its coattails.

King Stephan was a cross purposes with himself. A small seed of discontent started to fester in his heart, just after Angus was born. He was the proudest father in the realm it was true, but he knew himself, his queen and his family's odd history very well. His wife, gentle soul that she was, had always wanted a daughter, just one, to share with all the lovely things that only females knew. And he knew that a household full of boys would be no quiet, gentle place for years to come, if ever again. He hoped that one of his sons would share his love of shoes, but he knew most men did not and so did not wish to force his sons into something they wouldn't love.

And so both his discomfort and his family, continued to grow. When Julianna announced she was pregnant for the twelfth time, he at last decided that his heart couldn't bear the pain anymore. On their nightly walk through the castle gardens, he had drawn her down onto a bench.

"Light of my heart, I have been keeping something from you," he began, his usual good cheer disappeared under solemnity.

But Julianna had surprised him that night and gently laid a finger on his lips. "A daughter," she had said, a knowing smile on her face.

And the years of torment were washed away by two ordinary words. And so with hope in their hearts they waited. But alas, even some wishes are not meant to be. The doctors and the queen herself knew that this would be her last child. And so Anthony was christened and welcomed into the world just as his brothers had been.

And so the years continued to come and go. The boys grew stronger and wiser and even more quirky. The palace became a veritable zoo. The servants turned into a strange, harried race with more sauce than Mongolian barbecue. To the Queen's great pleasure one of her boys shared her passion for cooking and to the King's great chagrin none of them shared his. But even as these happy changes occurred, one thing did not. And it was this one thing, that would change everything.

When their eldest son, Arthur, had turned thirteen, a wish was made. The kind of wish murmured out of tiredness and despair and an aching soul. The kind of wish that did more harm than good. And the kind of wish that attracted a very unsavory character…Rumplestiltskin.

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><p>Author's Note: I apologize for the short chapter, more are coming, I promise. I decided to mirror the format of the show to save some confusion. One chapter set in 'our world', one set in the 'fairy tale' world. Not to beg or anything, but a few reviews would be nice. I'm kinda new at this and knowing whether or not my grammar is off, or the flow is wrong, is much appreciated. Until next time!<p> 


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